11 November 2012

I should be jumping up and down, cheering for myself like I cheered for my baby brother at the NCAA Cross Country Regionals on Friday. I'm down 25 pounds. But I'm so not even close to feeling good. I'm so not close to zipping up my old jeans and mini skirts. And I need something public to get me going. Here's a try at that.

My sister Lissa gave up sweets for an entire year, much like I gave up buying something new. Sweets are my downfall, especially sweets in small packages after Halloween has been over for a few weeks. I tried to limit myself to one a day--my friend Dede eats one cookie every day, just one. I can't do that either.

But I think I can give up sweets until Thanksgiving (with the exception of one delicious brownie this Tuesday night). It might make the pecan and pumpkin pie more sweet. It might make it special to have an extra slice the morning after.

Keep me honest. What are your best healthy tips? How do you let your virtues outweigh your vices?

08 November 2012

My sister Lissa visited months ago. We went shopping at Baby Gap, and we snapped these photos of Penelope. I don't know which ones Lissa captured and which ones I captured. And I like that. Penelope Belle is around four and a half months here.

06 November 2012

One of my favorite parts of the morning--the part that drags me out of bed on Mondays--is getting ready: brushing my teeth, styling my hair, and painting on my make up. But on weekend mornings, I really don't feel like doing the whole routine {which is really only around 10 minutes}. It was also a life saver when Penelope was first born, and three minutes was all I could spare to make myself feel good.

My quick fixes include a tinted moisturizer, which acts as a concealer and foundation; eyeliner, which I can't live without; a sheer mineral eye shadow; blush; and a touch of mascara and lipgloss.

This routine seriously takes me less than three minutes. My favorite products are the Sonia Kashuk moisturizer from Target, which is $15, but lasts forever; Nars blush in Love Joy from Sephora, which is somewhat expensive, but it lasts me for the year, and I wear it almost daily; Bare Minerals intense black eyeliner; Bare Minerals mineral eye shadow in nude beach; Mary Kay lip gloss or Revlon lip gloss in pink afterglow; Fresh mascara; a Bare Minerals blush brush; and a Sonia Kashuk eye shadow brush.

04 November 2012

Driving down back roads in autumn has to be one of my favorite ways to pass the weekend. I think one of my favorite memories to date is our family trip down the back roads from Missouri to Arkansas a few weekends ago to Pumpkin Hollow. I knew the perfect pumpkin patch had to be hiding closer to the South than the city. And we were right.

Penelope smiled and giggled almost the entire time. And her curious fingers grabbed at the stems, so we just had to bring one home for our city bungalow porch.

03 November 2012

I've been wanting to do this "series" for months now. And who knows when I will find the time to post everything. But I'm always thinking: If I'd had a blog when I was in high school, the mid-late-late 90s, I would have had tons of projects to post.

This is one of my favorite projects. I've always loved framing photos of my friends and family. And creative photo frames are still one of my favorite gifts to give. Just thinking about it, I think I have about five other DIY in 1999 frame ideas I created in high school or college.

This is the only one I still have--I gave it to Johnny very early on when we were dating. For the record, the 90s ended by that time. But I still like the sound of the series "DIY in 1999." I gave all the frames away to some of my sorority sisters and family members.

My first step in creating these personalized mattes was cutting up my magazine stash. I think that might be the first step in about half of my DIY in 1999 projects. I also kept the words I cut in color families--a stack of autumn tones for Johnny, a stack of lavenders and maroons for my sorority sisters, and a stack of greens for my sister sister. And I color coordinated with the matte. The words I chose were supposed to be reflective of our relationship. If I was creating one of these mattes again, circa 2012, I think I'd try to write a found poem with them. Maybe. And sometimes I think I should paint the frame gold or black. But then I think the wood reminds me of the time I created it, and I don't want to erase any of that.

This frame is still on display in our home. It's something I'll never let go of in a million years. If there was a fire, I would even rush downstairs to grab it before leaving the house. The photo on display right now is from New Year's Eve a few years ago. But beneath it is a stack of photos from over the years. I like that the past is hiding behind the glass.

14 October 2012

Johnny and I were driving around yesterday with the windows down listening to some Warren Zeevon hoping Penelope might catch a nap. And in the midst of our conversation, Johnny says: "You haven't posted a new blog in awhile."

Truth. Life these days is pretty packed--right now, I have very few things on my list: I nurse and cuddle and bathe Penelope; I catch a walk with the family; I study The Odyssey with my students; I grade papers; I cook, my new hobby; I snap photos with my iPhone; I catch an hour of Friday Night Lights; and I sleep. Oh. And I let go of something once a day {I'm on Day 44 now, and I've let go of 44+ things: it feels good}.

Typing it all out, it seems like I'm doing more than I thought. But compared to life just six months ago, I never realized how much I wasn't doing. So here's a blog post--a hope that I can post more later. And a note to know that if I don't, I'm happy enough knowing that the minutes I'm not spending on here are minutes I'm reading a book, blowing kisses, or singing old folk songs with Penelope Belle.

About Me

A sweet hello to you, readers. I'm Katie, and in my shop I go by katie scarlett. I'm a lifetime artist who enjoys filling up every last page of my sketchbook with quotes, notes, and pretty designs. During summer, I'm a full-time artist and poet; during the year I'm a full time high school English teacher. I have a box of poetry and stories I've yet to publish under my bed. I enjoy taking photos, baking, and styling my hair all sorts of beautiful. I'm married to the love of my life, and we hope to travel the world over and back together, forever and ever. For more about me, please check out the rest of my blog. It chronicles my year of not buying a single new thing in 2010:) And I've posted lots of artful and crafty diys.